On our latest vacation we found an extraordinary Church you must come and visit if you ever get the chance. Where do you find a Church that allows you to attend Mass and commune with nature all at the same time?
St. William's Catholic Church holds one Mass a week at its location in Hanalei, Kauai on the Hawaiian islands at 9am every Sunday. Father Ramelo Somera is the usual celebrant. He's a very expressive Priest who ad libs a most marvelous Homily. His facial expessions and comedic timing make him an effective communicator.
But what makes Mass so special here is the open air Church structure. As you can see from the photograph, the church has sliding doors on both sides. This allows for the trade winds to naturally cool the place (average temps between 75-85). The combination of the liturgical service (exceptional Hawaiian-influenced music ministry, etc.), the trade wind breeze and the sound of birds and other flora and fauna create an overwhelming assault of holiness on the senses and demonstrates God's bountiful blessings to all who attend.
At today's Mass most who filled the pews were vacationers from the mainland. We were all treated to Christ's banquet in one of the most breathtaking settings on the planet.
St. William's is part of St. Catherine Parish in Kapaa. St. Catherine has a special request for travelers: a donation to the "adopt-a-student" program. Islanders unable to send their kids to Catholic school are able to get scholarships thanks to the generosity of others, mostly visitors. If you can help, please join me in sending what you can to St. Catherine School, PO Box 1832, Kapaa, HI 96746.
Mahalo, Peace & Blessings!
Hanalei is a beautiful part of Hawaii.
ReplyDeleteWe assisted once at Holy Mass there in 2004.
My wife and I hope and pray that the Traditional Latin Mass, the Mass that nourished every single canonized saint, will come to St Williams.
We must remember that the Church has always taught that the Holy Sacrifice of Mass is exactly that, the unbloody sacrfice and re-presentation of Christs ignominious death on Calvary, and not an occasion for humour, joking and ad libs.
We can guffaw and have fun all we want outside of that one little hour and outside of the church where Christs Sacrifice is literally made present on the Altar of Sacrifice in St Williams and every other Catholic Mass throughout the world.
God bless.
We visited on St. William Catholic Church on 2/12/17. We were met by a gentleman who gave us shell leis as welcome, and by an extraordinary woman who was bringing in plastic bottles - big bags of them to an area so the church could cash them in for a nickle to support their school. She explained the difficulty they have in supporting their school because many of the islanders that would like to send their children to Catholic school are simply too poor to do so.
ReplyDeleteThe Mass was simple but beautiful. The building has large sliding doors that open to on the sides to let the island breezes come in as you worship. The church was full... and it was an awe inspiring experience, considering that the church has less than 50 full time members.
Consider visiting, one hour out of your vacation time to give to God isn't much. And try to be generous with your donation if you can.. They need the help, for a very worthy cause.